Posts Tagged ‘Economy’
Time to End Corporate Welfare for King Coal in Virginia
Virginia taxpayers have been boosting profits for the coal industry with tens of millions of dollars in tax breaks every year. That’s not big news – but what’s astounding is that, due to the structure of the subsidies, the Commonwealth is not only foregoing revenue, it is actually paying cash to the industry. According to…
Read MoreAnswer Me These Post-Coal Questions Three
A new blog for YES! Magazine asks, “How do we get over coal?” That’s the question many are asking in Appalachia, where coal’s contribution to the economy is wearing thin. Already, coal is less and less abundant and more and more expensive to extract. And because it harms the environment and destroys local communities, “How…
Read MoreCoal Industry Costs Virginians Millions of Dollars Every Year
New report suggests shifting money to diversify coalfield economies Contact: Rory McIlmoil, Downstream Strategies, 304-445-7200, mcilmoil@downstreamstrategies.com Cat McCue, Appalachian Voices, 434-293-6373, cat@appvoices.org Glen Besa, Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club, 804-225-9113 x 104, glen.besa@sierraclub.org Resources Full Report Executive Summary Blog Post Time To End Corporate Welfare For King Coal In Virginia Photos Richmond, VA –…
Read MoreRevealing the True Cost of Coal by Taking the “Con” Out of Economics
At the Democratic National Convention, Appalachian Voices’ staff attended and participated in several panel discussions and events relevant to our work. Perhaps the most engaging forum that I was fortunate enough to attend was the “Summit for a Sustainable Economy,” hosted by the American Sustainable Business Council. Shortly after I arrived, flipped through the materials…
Read MoreTen Years In, the Clean Smokestacks Act Continues to Benefit Us All
Right now, members of Congress are at home hearing from their constituents about the issues they most care about. In this spirit, we joined residents of North Carolina working on water issues to visit the Charlotte office Sen. Kay Hagan. It was exciting to be in the Queen City, as it gears up for the…
Read MoreA Summer of Resistance: Civil Disobedience and the Barriers to Progress
Photos of RAMPS’ “Mountain Mobilization” courtesy of documentary photographer Mark Schmerling. On July 28, an action planned and carried out by RAMPS — or Radical Action for Mountain Peoples’ Survival, a group based in West Virginia — led a large group of mostly young protesters to march up the entrance of the Hobet surface mine…
Read MoreAnother Coal Show in Abingdon
Yesterday I witnessed an award-winning political stunt attacking the EPA in defense of Big Coal. Representatives Griffith (VA), Roe (TN), and Whitfield (KY) led a field hearing in Abingdon, VA part of the House Subcommittee on Energy and Power series meant to investigate the EPA’s new greenhouse gas emission standards. The congressmen stated that Abingdon…
Read MoreRaleigh Legislature Hosts Citizens’ Lobby Day for Renewable Energy
There’s just something fitting about North Carolina renewable energy advocates getting up ahead of the sun – and this is exactly what they did on Tuesday June 12th as they rolled out of bed for the 7:00 AM convening of the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Society’s Citizen Lobby Day. Why such an early start? Renewable…
Read MoreFront Row Seats at the Political Theater in Abingdon, VA
Last Saturday, June 2nd, FACES of Coal and Americans for Prosperity held the “Rally for Appalachian Coal Jobs” in Abingdon, VA. The flier for the rally touts the usual “War on Coal” rhetoric: “Appalachian Coal Jobs have been under regulatory assault from the bureaucrats in Washington D.C. It’s time we stand up and defend them!”…
Read MoreRebranding Bank of America’s Responsibility
————————————————————————————————————————————– Join us in Charlotte on May 9 to remind Bank of America, the largest financier of the U.S. coal industry, of their responsibility to citizens and the environment. Visit our action page for more info and to sign up. ————————————————————————————————————————————– “BREAKING: Daring Action at Bank of America Stadium,” read the first email in my…
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